Max Verstappen ruled the Azerbaijan Grand Prix ahead of George Russell and Carlos Sainz.
Piastri came in ninth place after he left him without time in a third-quarter feature crash crash, but he continued to his first turn after jumping the start. On his bid to recover, the Australian was clumsy and trapped in turn 5, plunging into the barrier, and immediately finished his race.
It was Piastri’s first failure to finish a race since the 2023 US Grand Prix almost two years ago, and the third longest classification streak in Formula 1 history.
Also, Piastri presented an open goal to teammates and title rival Rand Norris, closing the 31-point championship gap at the beginning of the weekend, but Norris won one straight game and didn’t capitalize. The British started the race and finished the seventh inning, scoring just six points from his deficit.
After a fast start, Verstappen was not faced with a challenge from behind. Clive Rose/Getty Images
However, the permutation of the title did not affect Verstappen’s dishonest afternoon at the frontline of the field. The reality champion led all the laps of the race from the pole, setting the fastest lap of the afternoon to win his sixth career grand slam, drawing equally with Lewis Hamilton, putting the two behind statistical leader Jim Clark.
Verstappen’s championship deficit is 69 points.
“This weekend was incredible for us,” he said. “It’s great that we win here again.
“The car worked very well with both compounds. We had clean air all the time, so we were able to take care of the tires. It was pretty easy. I’m very pleased with this performance.”
George Russell finished the far two seconds, 14.6 seconds off the lead. It was two places in his starting position. The UK took the ground by running deep into the race with a hard-tyre start set to overcut Liam Lawson, Andrea Kimi Antonelli and Sainz.
“I’m so happy to be back on the podium,” he said. “The car was amazing.
“For us as a team trying to beat Ferrari as constructors, that was a good step towards that.”
As a result, Mercedes finished second in the Constructors Championship, four points ahead of Ferrari.
Sainz finished a popular, fully executed third. The Spaniard began second and benefited from the Lawson behind him, building a valuable buffer to support Mercedes drivers through the opening stint, protecting them from Antonelli’s undercut.
Russell won him with a long opening stint, but Antonelli put pressure on him in his second stint, but Sainz’s new tires offered him on a cleverly judged 24-lap run to checkered flags to earn Williams’ first podium finish since the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix.
“I can’t explain how happy I am and how good this feels,” he said. “It tastes better than my first podium.
“We’ve fought hard all year round, and finally, when today there’s speed – we’ve had it all year round – we’ve all come together and proved we can do some great things together.
“Today, we nailed the race rather than one mistake. Yesterday, we managed to beat a lot of cars that I didn’t expect to defeat. I’m extremely proud of everyone at Williams.”
When third place feels like a victory. Simon Galloway/Getty Images
Antonelli finished in a commendable fourth place, his best result since the Canadian Grand Prix in June. He finished ahead of that fifth, the fifth, the fifth, of his Grand Prix career, after a brave drive to protect the place before former teammate Yuki Tsunoda.
Tsunoda appeared to overcut Lawson at a stop late to the medium on lap 38, but raised his tires to the temperature and handed him decisively to turn 3.
The Japanese drivers were clearly faster, but were forced to settle for sixth, the best finish of the season, without finding a way to get past the Racing Bulls driver’s defense, but his eight points weren’t enough to prevent the Red Bull race from being eliminated from the contest for the constructor’s championship.
Norris finished the seventh he started after a throw to recover the lost places early in the race. The British lost their place to Isaac Hajar at the start and was robbed by Charles Leclerc on the safety car reboot, running to ninth place early in the race.
In the end, McLaren let Ferrari work on behalf of strategy. Leclerc first stopped for fresh hard tires on 19 laps, but wasted a new massive advantage bottled behind a defensive Lawson.
Norris went out until lap 37 and had the opportunity to overcut Leclair significantly, but due to the slower tire change on the lower right, he rejoined just behind the Ferrari. However, the problem was temporary, with 18-lap Newmers’s rubber able to return to 7th place on lap 41, passing Leclair.
However, as the tip before him benefits from Lawson’s doctor, which is what Norris has earned, he scored just six points in the unusual weekend piastry. His small score also ensured that McLaren could not seal the constructor’s championship, and the battle was scheduled to continue in the next race in Singapore.
Lewis Hamilton was eighth for Ferrari teammate Leclair, and after both drivers started strong, he lost a long battle with Norris, and Hager completed the Racing Bulls’ top 10.
Gabriel Boltöerto, Oliver Baerman, Alex Albon, Esteban Ocon, Fernando Alonso, Nico Halkenberg and Lance Stroll finished on the lead laps, while Alpine teammates Pierre Guthrie and Franco Colapinto finished the laps on the 18th and 19th.
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